The Spring in My Step
by Truthfulpen
Summary: In light of the death of a dear comrade and brother, can two old souls find love through their mutual bereavement? JuKaku/KuShiro (Ukitake Jushiro X ShibaKukaku)


**A/N: I've FINALLY decided to post this little project of mine. This is a crack pairing I thought up a long while ago, that really doesn't have much popularity. But being the crack-fic junkie that I am, I decided to give the JuKaku/KuShiro (Jushiro and Kukako) pairing a shot. **

** This is sort of a Pilot, and based on the reception this chapter gets, I may or may not keep this as a one-shot (That means you need to REVIEW, if you want more)**

**Just so everyone is aware: This chapter of the FF is taking place WAY BEFORE the events of the Soul Society Arc. If this story is continued, there will be time-skips, however.**

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Kukaku walked gingerly along the stone path, careful to avoid walking into the tiny pools of water that had collected in the depressions within the travel-worn road. Springtime was here. The Earth was coming to life again as the winter frost slowly receded, being absorbed as life-giving water that propelled greenery from the ground, revitalizing all that had withered in the winter. The smell of the crocuses and lavender that had been planted around the shrine mixed with rainwater brought very painful memories to the forefront of Kukaku's mind. Kaien had really loved the springtime. She had never understood why he had enjoyed the springtime so much; it was really a miserable time of year. Mucky ground, nasty weather, depressing skies, and perhaps worst of all, it was the time when her allergies would begin to act up. She vividly remembered the times when she would argue to him that he had horrible tastes in seasons, even mentioning the fact that he too suffered from springtime allergies, his symptoms sometimes being more severe than hers. He would always laugh, ruffle her hair and tell her that she needed to learn to lighten up. As Kukaku approached the shrine vivid memories of Kaien filled her mind.

_Noon usually found Kukaku asleep, cranky, and/or recovering from the effects of a night of heavy drinking with Yoruichi. However today was much different, it was one of those rare occasions where Kukaku not only woke up of her own accord, but was also glad that she was awake. Today was the eve of her brothers Kaien's wedding to Tanaka Miyako, and there was a lot of final arrangements to be made; if there was one thing Kukaku was good at, it was last-minute party planning. As reluctant as she had been to do so, As Kaien's only sister and oldest surviving immediate family member aside from the elders she had inevitably been placed in the role wedding planner, and advisor. To the surprise of both Kukaku and virtually everyone else, she had proven to be rather proficient at the job, and had excelled far beyond the expectations set for her. However the most perplexing part of it all was perhaps the fact that Kukaku had actually grown a liking to wedding planning. It was not that far off from planning a major redecoration or relocation of her manor because the same basic principles applied; disregarding the budget, thinking colour co-ordination, theme, location, and time. Sighing inaudibly, Kukaku turned the knob in her shower stall, halting the flow of steamy water that was pouring down her body. The wedding was only a day away and there were a lot of preparations to be made._

_Kukaku exited the confines of her steamy bathroom, shaking her head slightly, little droplets of water fly off of her person. Kukaku wrung the last of the excess water out of her damp raven mane and threw her towel to the side. Too lazy to look for proper clothing, she wrapped a simple lavender bathing Yukata around her body, and absentmindedly looked around for her pair of Geta's. Kukaku yawned and stretched as she made her way down an elongated mahogany staircase and headed toward the kitchen, following the trail of pleasant smells. Inside of the kitchen, the servants could be seen placing various breakfast items on the smaller dining table as Ganju consumed copious amounts of food, quickly depleting the provisions that had been placed on the table._

"_Ohayou Nee-san" chimed Ganju through a full mouth. His words were hardly audible through the sheer amount of food that he had managed to stuff his face with, but having lived with him his entire life, Kukaku had long grown used to the younger man's antics, and familiar with his full-mouthed speech. Kukaku shook her head in irritation; for a man of noble birth, Ganju was a complete pig at the table._

"_Don't talk with your mouth full, it's disgusting" she said irately before continuing, "And where the hell is Kaien?" _

"_Mmph? Oh he's outside Nee-san" he replied, face still stuffed with food._

_Kukaku scowled slightly at Ganju's response, but said nothing. Rather, she simply rose from the table, and sauntered out of the dining chamber. There was definitely something wrong with the men in her family. Only a Shiba man would have the foolish gall enough to test the extremes of their own allergies, by surrounding themselves with the very cause of it. Kaien did this every year; watching flowers bloom in the early spring time, despite the fact that the flowers which HE insisted be planted on the estate, were the same flowers which he was dreadfully allergic too. Kukaku headed straight for the back of the mansion, the sound of rather violent sneezing leading her to her target. When Kukaku opened the door to the back veranda, to no surprise she found Kaien outside, plate in hand, nose red and eyes watering, but a warm smile spread across his face; he was a complete and utter disaster._

"_You know, if it was Ganju here, sitting outside like this, looking like a rightful fool, I would've excused him. But this…This fuckery I find really hard accepting from you, you know."_

_A light chuckle which was followed by a sneeze, and then another, drifted out of Kaien's mouth, but he still managed to smile nonetheless._

"_Neesan, you're so cruel" he said, half-jokingly. "Why don't you sit down with me and watch the flowers bloom" He finished, turning his attentions back to the flowers._

"_Maybe I should tell Miyako-san that she's about to get married to another 'hime', since it's pretty obvious that your manhood has disappeared. You look like a sad woman from a theatrical drama" _

"_Is that a yes I here?" Said Kaien, _

"_If you really insist on sitting out here like a pansy watching flowers bloom, you might as well do it in the company of someone who at least hold the best interests of your masculinity at heart" Kukaku replied offhandedly as she took a seat next to her sneezing sibling._

Kukaku shook her head nostalgically; as irritating as he could be sometimes, Kukaku loved her brother's spontaneity and quirky outlook on life. If she could have lived the early portions of her life all over again, she would have aspired to be the same as him in her youth. But what was done was done, and the only thing Kukaku could really do was try her best to honour his memory, as she intended to do on his birth and death anniversaries. As she climbed up the steps towards the shrine Kukaku noticed that it was already being occupied. Berating herself for not realizing it earlier, she sensed the slightly supressed chakra of a rather familiar Taichou. Why he was here however, was both perplexing and aggravating. Kukaku quickened her pace as she ascended the stairs to the top of the shrine, determined to give the bastard who dared to defile her ancestral shrine a piece of her mind.

"What the hell do you think you're doing here!?" screeched Kukaku as she met the entrance of the shrine. What was supposed to be a fearsome yell came out more like a loud, raspy croak, which Kukaku attributed to the fact that running up the rather lengthy set of stairs had made her out of breath.

Jushiro visibly flinched as he was brought out of his reverie by the voice of a very angry sounding Kukaku. He knew he should not have come today, not when he knew his family members who weren't exactly keen on his presence would be here, would also want to be here to honour Kaien on his death anniversary. However, it was inevitable that it would come to this one day, and he really had been meaning to speak to the Shiba clanswoman, although he had been stalling for the past little while; her dislike for him was well known and Jushiro was never keen on adversarial confrontation. Raising himself from his kneeling position, Jushiro took a deep breath before he turned around to meet the enraged gaze of Kukaku.

"Ohayou, Shiba-san" He said calmly. The only way to handle an irate Shiba was to act as calm as possible, especially when it came to Kukaku he had learned; even the slightest hint of irritation or aggression would set her off, and the last thing he wanted to do is get into a serious spat with the woman.

"You can 'ohayou' the hell out of here you son of a bitch!" She snapped, marching towards the 13th division captain.

"Please Shiba-san, such language is inappropriate in a place like this. If not on my behalf, for the sake of the deceased, please refrain from the use of profanity here"

"Don't tell me what to do in _my_ family shrine! Murderers shouldn't be in a place like this, but yet here you are insulting my brother's memory with your false sense of concern, and your sanctimonious arrogance!"

_Murderer?_ Why on earth would she accuse him of such things Jushiro thought perplexedly, until he realized what she was referring to.

"You think I am responsible for Kaien's death?" he said, honest surprise in his voice. He hadn't believed Shunsui all the times when he had hinted at that being the reason for Kukaku's utter dislike of him, and her purposefully trying to exclude him from any memorial events dedicated to Kaien. But seeing her now so passionate and full of hate towards him, it was like a bucket of cold water had been dumped on him.

"You ARE responsible for his death you asshole! No ifs, ands, or buts! You have no right to be here, no right to walk around and act as though you're innocent… You're no better than a hollow" she spat, whispering the last part as tears began to roll down her cheeks. She didn't want to cry; Kukaku hated crying, but the sheer magnitude of hurt and anguish that Jushiro had riled up inside of her was too much for her to force down. She felt her whole body go weak, as if the shrine floor was beckoning to her, and she gave in to its call, only to be stopped midway into her descent by strong arms.

"Please don't cry Shiba-san. You're much too beautiful to waste your tears like this" Spoke Jushiro, softly. The pain the onyx haired woman carried was immensely heavy, and it broke Jushiro's heart to know that he had been at the roots of all of her suffering. He hated seeing women cry, and he couldn't bear to see Kukaku's surprisingly soft features, contorted with so much anguish.

Kukaku wanted to fight, wanted to punch or shove the white haired man, but no matter how she tried, she couldn`t manage to summon an ounce of strength. Grudgingly she allowed her body to lean into Jushiro's and allowed herself to bawl uncontrollably, all the while Jushiro stroking her hair and murmuring words of comfort.

Kukaku was unsure of how long she had spent bawling, but by the time she was finished, her eyes felt sore, and her throat raspy. Hesitantly, she looked up into the face of the man who allowed her to use his haori as a handkerchief, searching for some sort of negative expression in his countenance. When she found none she galled up the nerve to speak to him.

"Why aren't you angry with me?" she said weakly

Jushiro looked Kukaku in the eyes, brown-green meeting steel-gray, and smiled softly, "How could I be mad at you for being hurt? If anything I am mad at myself for being too cowardly to properly explain what happened that night. In doing so I have caused you a prolonged period of suffering" he replied.

"While I cannot take back the actions of my past, at least allow me to remedy my err by telling you the whole truth of the night of Kaien's death" he finished.

Kukaku nodded meekly, and allowed Jushiro to tell her every last detail of the night of Kaien's death, all the while staying in his arms, afraid that she would not be able to sit down straight, or stand on her own two feet as her emotions ravaged her composure. When Jushiro finished his story, Kukaku felt an immense weight being lifted off of her shoulders. The anger, the hatred, the bitterness, had all but dissipated, and she found herself smiling genuinely for the first time in a very long time. It was from that point on that the two mourners made a silent agreement to visit the Shiba family shrine on the birth and death anniversaries of both Kaien and his wife together.

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**A/N: Hope you enjoyed.**

**Review please!**

**As always, I love you guys and appreciate your feedback,**

**~_truthfulpen_**


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